Reconciliation
by LolaX
Summary: “Bless me father for I have sinned. It’s my partner. The last time I spoke to him we had a fight. I don’t know what to do. What if he dies? What if he dies and the last words we spoke were in anger?”
1. Chapter 1

**Reconciliation**

**_"Bless me father for I have sinned. It's my partner. The last time I spoke to him we had a fight. I don't know what to do. What if he dies? What if he dies and the last words we spoke were in anger?"_**

Chapter One

Mulder was sat at his desk waiting for Scully to return. He looked at his watch. It was almost 8.30pm. She was very late. He opened the top drawer and pulled out his bundle of yellow pencils tied up with a rubber band. As he began to line them up perfectly along his desk, his cell phone rang. Mulder picked it up from the desk. Scully's voice sounded from the earpiece.

"Mulder, it's me. Sorry I didn't come back. I'm at Casey's Bar. Wanna join me? I was nearby and I thought we could discuss my findings over a drink." Mulder was pleased to hear that she didn't sound drunk.

"But, you told me to meet you here! Alright, why not… I could do with a drink. I'll be right there, Scully."

Fifteen minutes later he walked into the bar and scanned the crowd for a glimpse of her Titian hair. He spotted her at the bar and made his way through the crowd. "Hey." He sat down next to her. "Tequila, please." He said to the barman. "And whatever you're having." He looked at Scully, who ordered a glass of red wine.

"So what did you find?"

"I found the details that you said I would. It seems that he's made his way to Cuba."

While they discussed the case and the new details Scully had found, they drank their drinks and both began to feel the alcohol slightly.

"Well, let's book a flight to Cuba!"

"Whoa, hold your horses Mulder! We have the facts we need here. We don't need to go there… It's safer here."

"Oh…okay." Mulder was slightly disappointed, swirling the last drop of liquid in the bottom of his glass. "Er, another drink Scully?"

After three more tequilas, Mulder put his head down on the bar.

"What's the matter, Mulder?" Scully asked, smiling slightly as she looked at him from over the rim of her second glass of wine.

"Well," Mulder began slurring only slightly, "the last time I was this drunk I told the barmaid about how bad my life was."

"What did you tell her?" Scully asked. Mulder searched his memories and remembered his exact words.

"I'm an annoyance to my superiors and a joke to my peers. They call me Spooky Mulder, whose sister was abducted by aliens when he was just a kid and who now chases after little green men with a badge and a gun…" He trailed off and Scully was filled with compassion.

"Come on Mulder. Let's get you home." She smiled, took his arm and helped him into a cab outside, then up to his apartment.

At his apartment, Mulder fumbled with the keys and eventually they were able to get inside. Mulder seemed drunk, his hair messy, his face flushed, but yet his eyes showed seriousness and sobriety. When he spoke Scully could detect no intoxication in his words.

"I'm so sorry Scully. I try to protect you but I can't, really. I've put your life in danger so many times, and now I'm afraid I might be doing it again."

"It's not your fault, Mulder. I know you never do it on purpose!" Scully attempted to lighten the seriousness of the conversation, but Mulder still continued to blame himself.

"Everything is my fault. I have spoilt your life, and it's because of me that you don't have the social life or relationships you keep wanting."

"Mulder, that's my own fault not yours. How can you blame yourself for my silly problems? Anyway, they don't matter! What matters is us. Me and you; our relationship." Scully reached out for his hand. "Don't you agree, Mulder? Besides I do have a social life, look! We just spent two hours in a bar, socialising!"

"I meant you socialising with other people; other men." He added with a slight hiccup as she grinned and laughed.

"What other men, Mulder? Come on, let's socialise!"

She went over to the CD player. "Beyond the Sea" began to echo around the room. Finally, Mulder smiled, as Scully sat down on the couch.

"I have a better idea…" Mulder suggested and walked over to her, offering his hand. She took it and he pulled her into his arms and they danced together, swaying in time to the music, huge grins playing on both their faces.

Scully looked at their joined hands. She smiled and looked back up at Mulder. He was watching her with an intense look in his eyes. She noticed that his hazel eyes were darker than usual, their colour deep and intense, and she removed her hand from his and placed it on his cheek.

For the first time they successfully allowed the barriers to fall completely. Scully put her hand around the back of his neck, directing his lips down to hers. Mulder kissed her softly while he held her face in both hands, stroking her now flushed cheeks with his thumbs, and she returned the kiss they had both put off for so long. Scully could taste the tequila on Mulder's breath but it was the kiss, not the alcohol, which was intoxicating. They parted and leant their foreheads together, breathing deeply, both smiling. Mulder looked down at Scully, who wrapped her arms around his middle and leant against him, while he stroked her hair. His hand moved to the collar of her shirt and touched the nape of her neck.

"No bees this time!" He muttered into her ear. She smiled and kissed the spot above his heart through the dark grey material of his sweater, before looking up again and kissing him tenderly on the lips.

**Author's Note: What do you think? Please let me know! It's much appreciated!  
Chapter 2 on the way ASAP!**


	2. Chapter 2

**_Here is the second chapter! It's where the action begins! I hope it gets your adrenaline pumping from reading it, just as much as mine did while writing it! Enjoy! And please R&R! Much love, LolaX  
_**

Chapter Two

They had been snuggled up together on the couch, chatting for about an hour when Scully had fallen asleep. Mulder had fallen asleep too, watching her peacefully, his arms around her. He wouldn't let anything happen to her again. He would always try to protect her.

Soft morning light began to drift into the apartment and Mulder stood up, careful not to wake Scully, and grabbed the phone. He was just replacing the phone on its stand when Scully woke up. She stretched and looked over at him, smiling.

"Good morning. Who d'you call?" Her voice was content and still full of sleep.

"Morning. I called the airline. I'm got myself a flight to Cuba this afternoon."

"But I said we don't need to go!" Scully sat up sharply. "We can stay here. We need to write up those reports."

"I'm going Scully. You don't need to. I'll let you know what I find so you can report it…"

"No Mulder! You are not ditching me again! " Scully snapped leaping up and approaching him. "This is not one of those times were you disappear off to the Arctic or Puerto Rico or Alaska or Cuba! And leave me here to worry and not know where you are! You're not going on your own! For once everything is happening _here_, not in some remote wilderness. He'll be back here Mulder! We have all we need to solve this! The only remaining factor is for us to be here, together." She glared at him, breathing heavily. "I'm tired of this! You just want this all for yourself. I'm sick of doing all of your donkey-work, the boring jobs! We are supposed to be equals! I can't believe you can be this selfish! And _now_ after what we just did…after what just happened. I can't keep waiting around! I don't know why I've kept working with you all this time!"

Mulder said nothing and stood up. He walked towards the front door, picking up his coat as he went and putting it on in a swirl of black material. He reached the doorway and turned back towards her. The colour of his eyes had changed again. The glow of passion of a few moments ago had faded from them, but they were not back to normal. Their warm hazel had evaporated to a cold green-grey, another colour Scully had never seen in her partner's eyes before. When at last Mulder spoke, his voice was calm, bitter and cold; not his usual voice at all. "Well, at least I know what you think of me now. I was only protecting you, Scully. Lock up when you leave."

And with that he walked out of his apartment. Anger had not been evident in his eerily calm voice but it showed in his loud slamming of the door. Scully was extremely upset. Silent tears began to fill her eyes and her breathing started to hitch slightly with small sobs. She hardly remembered the last time she had cried, but it seemed like the only thing to do now. After years of attempts and countless near misses, she and Mulder had finally let each other fully into their hearts; but now, so soon, Mulder had walked straight back out of hers, and slammed the door behind him.

Later that morning, after composing herself and going to her apartment to change, Scully returned to the office. She paced around, thinking of what to say; waiting for Mulder to arrive or to call. He did neither. She did her the work assigned for that day half-heartedly. She couldn't concentrate on it and kept lancing at the clock every few minutes. He would be off to Cuba soon, and their row would hang over them like a big, black cloud for days, maybe weeks. A brand new phase of their relationship had just begun, and now it looked to be over, not before their long friendship had been ruined in the process. At four o'clock Scully grabbed a pencil and wrote Mulder a note. She folded it in half, placed it on his desk and left the office.

After leaving Scully stood in his apartment, Mulder walked outside. He regretted slamming the door like that and knew that this row would take a lot of getting over. He and Scully often disagreed, but hardly ever got angry. Mulder knew that this was going to be hard to see through and return to their friendship, their relationship. He sighed. Why did they have to get angry? Why then? Why did they have to drift further apart just when they had got closer than ever before? Mulder sighed and got in his car. He needed time to think so he just drove aimlessly around DC. Later, he returned to his apartment, but Scully had already left. Mulder packed a bag sadly and left for the airport. As he was early, he decided to stop by the office. Hopefully Scully would still be there.

As he opened the office door, Mulder noticed a folded piece of paper with his name written on the outside, lying on his desk. He picked up the note and opened it to find Scully's handwriting staring up at him from the page.

"_Dear Mulder,_

_If our life means anything to you, if love can persuade at all, or the spirit we have in common, or any tenderness and sympathy, let us be united in our convictions and united in love, with a common purpose and a common mind. That is the one thing which would make me completely happy. Please come home, we need to talk._

_All my love, Dana x. "_

"Home?" Mulder thought aloud. He didn't know where she was referring to. His apartment or hers? Or was it metaphorical? A lump had formed in his throat as he read the note again. All she wanted was for them to be back together, and that was all he wanted too. In a blur he left the office, jumped into his car and sped towards Georgetown. If he was lucky he could make it there in about ten minutes.

It turned out not to be Mulder's lucky night; every traffic light he came to turned red. He swore as he stopped at a jammed up crossroad. "Come on! I've made her wait too many times before!"

A large and impatient queue of traffic had built up behind him and their headlights glared through his rear window making it difficult for him to see. He squinted up at the road ahead, imagining Scully in her apartment, waiting, hoping for him to return. Crying? No, Scully was too strong for that. That was one of the things he loved about her… Suddenly there was a knock on the driver's window. Mulder jumped. A tall man in a red Washington Nationals baseball cap was holding a briefcase. Mulder let down the window.

"Are you Agent Fox Mulder?" The man asked, his Hispanic voice raspy. As Mulder nodded the man pulled a handgun from the briefcase and fired a shot into Mulder's shoulder. Mulder screamed in pain and grabbed for his own gun, blood leaking all over the upholstery. It was too late; the assailant fired another shot but was disturbed and fled, as the truck behind began to blare it's horn and the driver got out. The second shot had torn Mulder's right temple open and he collapsed against the steering wheel. He was barely conscious as the truck driver ran over and dialled 911. Mulder's vision was blurred and his voice weak. He managed to lift his head and muster a single breath with which to speak; "Call Dr. Scully…" but the truck driver couldn't hear him. He tried to speak again but blacked out, his head hitting the steering wheel again; the car's horn blared loudly.

The paramedics wheeled Mulder through the hospital and into the emergency room, noise and shouting following them from the ambulance. They had checked his pockets and found his FBI badge and his wallet. They checked his medical card and found the phone number for his next of kin; a nurse left to make the dreaded call. They removed his clothes and hooked Mulder up to the monitors, cleaned the blood away and began to work on his wounded shoulder and temple.

In her apartment, Scully's phone rang. She was sat on the couch with a case-file, while her Sarah McLachlan CD played from the stereo. She ignored the phone at first, but then something in her intuition told her that she had to pick it up. Just as the answering machine was about to get it, Scully grabbed the receiver. A female voice spoke gently, "Dana Scully? I'm calling from Holy Cross Memorial hospital…"  
Scully threw the receiver down and bolted from the room, panic beginning to course through her veins.

Scully flashed her badge at the nurse on duty and burst through the double doors into the emergency room just in time to hear the doctor say, "Half an inch more and he'd be already dead!" They had carefully extracted the bullet from Mulder's shoulder and now were re-examining the head wound.

"Doctor, his pulse is weaker!" The nurse yelled. "Look at the monitors!"

The doctor looked at the monitor and leapt into action. "It's thready…We're losing him!"

As Mulder began to flat-line, Scully grew paralysed with fear and all she could do was watch as the doctors ran around doing all they could to save her partner. She tried to speak, but found just breathing difficult.

"I'm his doctor!" She said, the words coming out as a helpless whisper. "I'm Dr. Scully." Tears did not fall; she was past that, but she thought that her own heart had stopped beating with Mulder's.

"Clear!" Scully heard the doctor yell and the subsequent thump as Mulder's body leapt up and fell back down on the bed from the force of the defibrillator. "Clear!" The doctor tried again. Scully stood in silence as she watched Mulder's body jump again and fall back down, lifeless, to the bed.

"Once more." The doctor spoke calmly and placed the paddles to Mulder's chest. With a crackle of electricity and a loud thump, the line on Mulder's monitor began to spike in a living rhythm again. He had a weak pulse; he was trying to come back, and Scully could feel her own heart and breathing resume with his.

**_Just give that button a little click! You know you want to! Otherwise you may never find out what happens! ;)_**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Sorry to keep you waiting! Thanks for your patience!  
I'm very busy at University at the moment, so I really don't know when I will have time to update next after this…anyway, I hope you enjoy!  
**__**Thanks for the reviews and please keep them coming! Each review makes my day and makes me want to write more!  
Love, LolaX**_

Chapter Three

"Why don't you go home and get some rest? There isn't a lot more you can do for him here?"

Scully looked up at the nurse from where she was sat at Mulder's bedside.

He had been asleep in his hospital bed for almost a week. He hadn't woken up yet. His vitals were good but he was still weak. He was not improving fast enough for Scully's liking. Whenever her phone rang she would freeze in fright. Everyday when she arrived at the hospital she would fear the worst. She spent every spare moment at his bedside.

"I can't. I need to be here when he wakes up."

The nurse gave her a poignant look and turned to leave.

"Well, you need to keep your strength up too."

As she closed the door behind her, Scully yawned, rubbed her eyes and rested her head back against the hard chair.

"Dana, why don't you go home and get some rest?"

Dana opened her eyes to see her mother standing in the doorway.

"Hi Mom." She said weakly as Maggie came over to hug her.

"Hi. How's he doing?" She crossed to Mulder and ran a hand through his hair. When Scully remained silent, Maggie looked up at her. "Dana?"

"He's not much better, Mom. He may stay like this…" She swallowed. "He, he may never wake up."

Scully looked down at her feet, avoiding her mother's gaze as tears threatened to fall again.

Maggie took her daughter's hands gently.

"This isn't your fault Dana. You can't blame yourself…"

"Yes I can! It's all my fault! I yelled at him! I over-reacted Mom…and now I may never get to speak to him again."

"Go home, Dana."

Later, when Maggie had left, Scully was still sat in the chair, staring at Mulder. His face looked very peaceful and unaffected, apart from the large bandage around the top of his head.

Scully rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb again. She looked at her watch and stood up, deciding to go.

Scully returned to her apartment in a sort of trance, her mind consumed with thoughts of Mulder lying in his hospital bed. Would he ever wake? Nobody knew.

Scully unlocked the door to her apartment and sighed, leaning back against the door after she had closed it. She thought about Mulder again and suddenly a scary thought crossed her mind.

His living will. She had signed it as his witness! She would have to make the decision to terminate life-support if he was not going to wake up. Scully clapped a hand to her mouth and ran to the bathroom.

After a shower, Scully returned to the living room in her pyjamas. She sat down on the couch as she towelled her hair dry. She looked up at the mantle piece and spotted a photo of herself and Mulder.

She looked away quickly and stared at the window. The blinds were down and shadows cast by the pale orange glow of the streetlights played against them. She needed a distraction. Scully stood up and crossed to her desk. From the top of a pile of books, she picked up the novel she was reading. Under it she saw the black leather of her Bible. The golden words Holy Bible stared up at her and she grabbed the book and returned to the couch, leaving her novel on the desk.

Scully flicked through the familiar pages of her bible trying to find some words of comfort.

A passage caught her eye and she read it calmly.

"And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed…"

Scully stood up from the couch and went to bed, carrying her bible with her. She slipped under the covers and stared up at the dark ceiling. She held the small gold cross around her neck gently as she closed her eyes. Scully eventually fell into a restless sleep. She tossed and turned in bed, but did not wake.

When Scully woke, she found herself tangled in the covers, hugging a pillow, her face wet. She was upset to find that she had cried in her sleep. She jumped out of bed and went to the bathroom.

As she made herself a cup of tea, Scully decided to take a walk before visiting Mulder. She needed some fresh air, and a walk would help to clear her head.

As she put on her coat, the phone began to ring.

"Hello."

"Agent Scully. How are you?" Walter Skinner's voice was caring.

"I'm okay sir. I was just on my way out. I'm gonna visit Agent Mulder in a couple of hours. Have you visited him again sir?"

"I was going to try and visit him this afternoon actually. How long will you be there, Agent Scully?"

Scully sighed. "Probably all night."

"I see." Skinner didn't seem that surprised. "Well, alright. How's he doing?"

"No change sir." Scully's voice threatened to break. "The doctors aren't holding their breaths for a recovery."

"Oh." Skinner paused sadly. "If you need to talk Agent Scu…Dana, you know where I am."

"Thanks sir."

"I'll see you later."

Scully walked slowly along the street. The sun was shining brightly and she was annoyed at how happy everyone she passed seemed to be. Was she the only person in the world with a crushing, weighty burden on their shoulders?

She watched a young man and woman and a small boy saunter along. Every few steps the parents would lift their son into the air with a squeal of delight. She watched a young woman help her elderly grandfather along the street towards the mailbox.

A truck pulled up next to the sidewalk and a man jumped out. He carried a huge bouquet of flowers, lilies mostly. He carried them up the sidewalk, walking several paces before Scully.

The delivery man turned sharply and entered a large church. Scully stopped outside the doors and looked up at the big, old building.

She looked back up and down the street, took a deep breath and decided to enter the church.

She had never been in this church before; the air was slightly chilly. The large church was empty except for a nun at the front who was arranging some flowers with the help of the delivery man Scully had followed.

As she made her way down the aisle Scully picked up a sheet of parish notices. She genuflected briefly, crossed herself and sat down at the end of a pew near the front.

She read that the funeral of Sergeant Joe Lawson of the DCPD would take place later that day. She put the paper down and knelt down. Leaning against the pew in front, she crossed herself again and began to pray. She looked up and saw a large crucifix hanging above the altar. Scully's thoughts swirled around her tired mind as she stared up at the beautifully intricate figure of Christ. She noticed the detail in his dark brown hair, intense eyes and the thorns around his head, flecks of blood colouring his brow.

She gasped and looked back down sharply, as images of Mulder flooded her mind.

She rested her head on her joined hands atop the pew and closed her eyes.  
"Our Father, who art in heaven…"

Scully heard the heavy wooden doors open behind her. Sunlight flooded into the church through the open doors and footsteps began to make their way down the aisle. Scully turned around slowly and her eyes widened.

Mulder walked towards her, smiling serenely. He wore a white button-down shirt and there was no bandage on his head. The light behind him shone brightly and Scully had to squint as she stood up and turned to face her approaching partner.

When he got to her, he held out his hand and took hers, not saying a word. Scully looked up at him, puzzled, and reached out to touch his face. It was strangely cold.

"Mulder, you're cold…Your wound, it's gone. When did you wake up?"

Mulder just continued to look at her peacefully, not saying a word.

"Mulder? Talk to me."

He shook his head slightly and let go of her hand.

"I can't stay," he said softly. "Thank you. Thank you for praying for me, Dana."

"Dana? Dana." Scully felt a hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes, raised her head from the pew and looked up at the man beside her.

"F-Father McCue? What are you doing here?" She sat up quickly.

"I was visiting Sister Frances. I saw you here and thought I was imagining it. Are you alright, Dana?"

"I, I haven't been sleeping well." She stood up and rubbed her eyes.

"Have you been crying Dana?" The priest looked at her with compassion.

"Er…" Scully swiped at her eyes. "I must have…when I dozed off."

"Do you want to talk Dana? I have time if you would like to."

Scully looked up at the crucifix again. She thought about the dream she had just experienced. Had it been a dream or a vision? She looked back at the familiar priest.

"Yes, father. A talk would be good…C-can I make confession?"

Sat in the open confessional booth, Father McCue watched Scully with care as she crossed herself and began to speak.

"Bless me father for I have sinned… It's my partner, Mulder. He's been shot."

Scully paused and Father McCue silently urged her to continue.

"The last time I spoke to him we had a fight… I don't know what to do. What if he dies? What if he dies and the last words we spoke we in anger?"

"Tell me more Dana."

"We- we have worked together for so long…and then we just…well, the other night we finally admitted something to each other."

"I know you have worked together a long time. It seems like you have an excellent partnership. What did you admit, Dana?"

"That we…we're in love with each other." Scully looked down at her hands, which were knotted tightly in her lap. "We have danced around the truth for so long. It seems as though whenever we tried to tell each other how we felt something would happen to disturb us. And now, when we finally manage it, look what happens!"

Father McCue listened to her and reached out and put his hand on her arm.

"Do not regret your love, Dana. You have come to me to ask God for forgiveness for your sins, but your love needs no absolution. Your anger, the regret you feel from the fight, that is what you feel guilty of, and God will absolve you. Now, I think the way forward is what you were doing here today."

Scully looked at him, worry in her eyes.

"Prayer, Dana. That is what will help you both. You and your partner."

"Yes. I know my faith will help, but I'm just so worried about him." She sniffed back her tears and fingered the cross around her neck. Father McCue spoke gently.

"You are both in my prayers. Is their anything else you want to talk about, Dana?"

Scully shook her head sadly.

"Well Dana thank you for being so open. All I think you need to do is keep your faith. Keep praying, and keep talking to Mulder. I think that really helps. Do you think he hears you Dana?"

"I think…Yes I hope so."

"Tell him how you feel. Tell him your sorry. I'm sure he is too. Tell him everything you have told me today and more. I know that you are strong and always keep true to the FBI motto. Fidelity, bravery, integrity. That is what God wants you, and that will bring Mulder back. Don't you agree?"

Scully nodded and let a small, grateful smile flit across her face. She would never give up.

"Yes, father."

"Now, Dana…" He held his hand out in front of Scully's forehead and said, "God the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son, has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

Scully looked up at him and he smiled.

"Go in peace, Dana. Go, and make sure Mulder knows how you feel. He'll come back to you. Have faith."


	4. Chapter 4

**_Hey guys! I'm SO sorry about the wait! I am so busy! But here is the penultimate chapter! Final chapter on the way as soon as possible!  
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE leave some reviews!_**

Chapter Four

As he lay in the hospital bed, Mulder's arms lay on top of his covers and Scully, sat at his side, held his left hand tightly in hers. She watched his chest rise and fall in steady breaths as he slept. Occasionally, she would reach up and stroke his hair or cheek and trace small circles on the hand she held in hers. Many different nurses came in to monitor Mulder's condition and tell Scully that visiting hours were over. Every time she would tell them the same; she had special access as his partner and as a medical doctor. She was determined to stay at his bedside in case he woke, if he woke. No, _when_ he woke.

There was a gentle knock on the door and Walter Skinner entered carrying two paper cups of coffee.

"Hey." Scully said quietly.

"Hi." Skinner smiled and handed her a cup.

"Thanks." Scully said gratefully taking a sip. Skinner put his hand on her shoulder kindly as he sat in a chair at her side.

"How's he looking?"

Scully continued to sip from her steaming cup. "His pulse is stronger than before. But otherwise…"

"Oh, that's a good sign." Skinner drank from his own coffee; he was glad of something to break the awkward silence.

They began to discuss Scully taking some time off. Scully was adamant that she only wanted time off to stay at Mulder's bedside. Skinner understood and told her that whatever she felt like doing was fine.

She could return to work only when she was ready; they both hoped that Mulder would return to that basement office too.

Scully jumped slightly as Skinner's pager bleeped.

"Sorry." He said, standing up. "I've gotta go." He touched her shoulder again. "Just give me a call if you need anything at all Dana. I'll speak to you soon."

Scully smiled, standing up as Skinner walked to the door.  
"Sir?" She asked, just as he was about to turn the handle. He turned back to face her as she walked up to him and hugged him. "Thank you for caring."

Scully had been at Mulder's side for hours, and now she could feel her eyelids becoming heavy and sleep beginning to overwhelm her. She decided to give in. She placed a light kiss on Mulder's hand, which was still held in her own, and then rested her head on the bed at his side. Amongst the beeps and buzzing of all the monitors, Scully drifted off to sleep listening to the gentle sounds of Mulder's breathing.

"Scully." Mulder's voice croaked out her name. She stirred, for a moment she had forgotten where she was, then sat bolt upright and smiled delightedly at Mulder. His eyes were bloodshot and sunken, but she could still use them to read him. "Hi." She whispered; in her mind she thanked God for bringing Mulder back, for letting her see his hazel eyes open once again. She had thought about his eyes all the while they had been closed_. _As her professor at Med. school had said, from a medical point of view the bright glow in the eye during life is merely the reflection of light by the moisture of the corneas. The appearance of life being drained from the eyes after death is not the soul's departure; it is simply the lack of the blink reflex keeping the corneas bathed in fluid. But Scully believed that through Mulder's eyes she could see his soul and know his thoughts.

"Mulder." Her voice was full of relief. He managed a weak smile and squeezed her hand in return. Slowly she stood up. Mulder was scared that she was leaving, but she didn't turn towards the door. Instead she opened her arms and leant down over him on the bed, hugging him tightly; he ignored the pain in his shoulder. "I prayed for you." She whispered. "I asked for you to come back." Mulder wrapped his arms around her as she rested the side of her head against his and said softly into his ear, "Thank God you're alright."

Mulder turned his head, wincing at the twinge in his temple, and kissed her on the cheek. His dry lips stayed there for a long moment and then he hugged her tighter as though he had been away from her forever.

"Next of kin?" She mumbled into his shoulder.

"What?" Mulder asked, a frown playing on his face as Scully pulled away and sat back down in her chair. She took his hand again, pleased at being able to feel life in it.

"They called me because I'm registered as your next of kin." Scully said. "Why, Mulder?"

"You're all I have, Scully." Mulder croaked. "You're the only one I trust." He squeezed her hand.

"Well, I'm not related to you, Mulder." Scully pointed out. "I'm not really your next of kin; I'm more of a stranger in blood."

"But you might as well be a relative. We're that close. I lov…." Mulder began to cough heavily. Scully helped him to drink some water, careful not to spill it down his chin as he gulped down liquid for the first time in almost three days.

"I'm sorry Mulder." Scully sat back in her chair, replacing the empty glass on the table. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have shouted at you. You were only looking after me."

"I'm sorry too Scully." Mulder looked at her tenderly. "I know you were only looking after me too. I was silly." He reached out his hand and held hers tightly. Something on the other side of the room caught his eye. He squinted over at the hook on the wall.

"Is that my jacket over there, Scully?"

"Yeah it is."

"There's a piece of paper in the inside pocket. Could you get it for me?"

Scully handed Mulder the folded piece of paper. She was shocked to see speckles of his blood, red against the white paper. He unfolded it and took her hand again. She looked down at the paper.

It was her note.

"You got it?" She breathed.

Mulder nodded. "I was on my way to you when this happened." He gestured to his bandaged forehead.

"I decided that I didn't need to go to Cuba. I needed to go home."

Scully smiled down at him.

"I thought I had lost you, Mulder...But part of me knew you would come back."

"I'm home now, Scully."


	5. Author's Note!

_Hi everyone!_

_I am SO sorry about the wait for the final chapter!_

_I have had exams the last few weeks, but I am all done now, and the final chapter is nearly ready!_

_It is longer than usual __to compensate for the wait, and I also have another treat for you!_

_I whipped up a quick trailer for "__Reconciliation__" one evening, and you can now find it on YouTube along with my other Mulder and Scully/X-Files videos!_

_This is my __YouTube account: **youtube**__**.com/user/MyNameIsLolaX**_

_and this is the trailer for __"Reconciliation:"** youtube**__.com/_watch?v=_8vmE6Xzv0c

_Go have a look, and let me know what you think! It w__ill wet your appetites for the final chapter!_

_Much love_

_LolaX_

xxxxxxx


	6. Chapter 5

**_Well, I finished it sooner than I thought, so here it is guys, and it's SO looooong! A lot longer than I ever expected! I just got caught in the flow! Anyway, I hope you like it, and that it was worth the wait! Thanks for your patience. Enjoy and please leave feedback! New stories coming soon!_**

**_Much love, LolaX_**

Chapter Five

"Hang on!" Scully said horrified, pulling her hand from his. "This was actually my fault! Oh my God!"

"What?" Mulder said, his brow furrowed, as tears filled Scully's eyes.

"It's all my fault! You were almost killed because of me…" She stared back at him, the light blue orbs of her eyes glowing under the florescent lights of the hospital room.

Mulder looked at her, puzzled.

"What are you talking about, Scully?" He shifted in the bed, sitting up and grabbing her hand again.

"You got the note! You were coming to see me because you read it! If-if I hadn't written it to you, none of this would have happened. You wouldn't have been shot!" Her voice got faster and more agitated.

"Scully," Mulder said gently. "It's okay! I'm okay! None of this was your fault. I could have gotten shot anywhere, at any time!"

Scully sniffed. "You saw who shot you, _didn't_ you?" She mumbled, beginning to calm nodded, but said no more, and the note was not mentioned again.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Best of five?" Mulder asked after their fourth game of cards.

"Nah, I'm bored with this game now!" Scully packed the cards back into the box. "What else can we do?"

"Did you bring the Scrabble?" Mulder suggested as he shifted in his seat. "It's a bit more challenging."

"Yep." Scully said as she produced the board game from her bag and set up the board on the table between them. "You're going down, Mulder!"

"We'll see Scully, we'll see…and NO medical jargon! It's cheating!"

"Ha! 'Jukebox'. Beat that Scully! 77 points to me!"

Scully stared at Mulder as he placed down his letters.

"Wow. That's too good Mulder! Are you cheating?"

"No! How dare you?" Mulder smiled and collected some more letters from the bag. "Your turn!"

Scully stared at the board, thinking hard, her eyes flitting back and forth from the board to her letters.

"Just give me a minute, Mulder…I- I think I've got a really good one…"

"Sure. Fine. Whatever." Mulder smirked, Scully gave him her death glare.

"Carotid." She announced happily. "I'm using the 'o' of your jukebox. 60 points for me!"

She smiled and scribbled down the score. Mulder was winning, but only just, and that was because of his early lead by corrupting her word 'invest' to make 'investigate'.

"Beer! With triple word score!" Mulder added happily, putting his letters down as Scully reached for the bag.

"There's only two letters left. Let's share them, one each."

"No, you have them Scully. I've won anyway now!"

Scully tutted and took the letters.

"Your turn." Mulder added smugly as she placed her final word onto the board. "What you got?"

"Quartz." Scully smiled up at him.

"Well, that's _only_…" he counted in his head. "…24. You can't beat me! Nice try though!"

"A-hem." Scully coughed and pointed to the board. "Double word score, Mulder."

She added up the scores, a huge smile on her face.

"Well Mulder, you scored a very nice 382, but I got a perfect 400!" She tried to contain a cheer of triumph, but failed. "Yes! I win!"

"Oh." Mulder said glumly. "Congrats, I guess." He held out his hand and Scully shook it firmly.

"Cheer up Mulder." She smiled at him. "It's only a game."

"I know." Mulder smiled at her warmly. "And it took my mind off things."

"How you feeling now? You all ready to go home tomorrow?" Scully asked, taking his hand across the board.

"I'm feeling better…bit of a headache. But you bet, I can't wait to get out of here!" Mulder smiled.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next morning, Scully arrived to take Mulder home. She entered the room smiling brightly, carrying a duffel bag.

"Hey. All set to go home?"

Mulder was sat on the edge of his bed, still wearing his hospital gown. He nodded enthusiastically, then clutched at his bandage as a quick pain shot through his wound.

"Ouch!"

"I bought you some clothes." Scully held up the bag and handed it to him as he stood up.

"Thanks. Won't be a sec." He went into the small bathroom to change.

"I'll pack up your things." Scully called through the door.

"Okay."

Scully had collected all Mulder's bits and pieces into a neat pile on the bed when he emerged from the bathroom in grey jeans, a black hooded top, and a pair of sneakers. Scully turned and smiled at him, happy to see him looking much better, and much more like his normal self.

She took the now empty bag from him and put all his things into it. Then she turned back to find him smiling warmly at her. She couldn't help herself; crossing the room she threw her arms around his midriff and hugged him tightly. Neither spoke; nothing needed to be said.

When Scully let go of him she said, "Oh, I brought you something else," and handed him his favourite Yankees cap. Mulder beamed at her and pulled it onto his head, carefully avoiding his bandage.

"Let's go, Mulder." She grabbed the handle of the bag.

"Let me get that." Mulder said.

"No. You need to rest."

He smiled at her as she wrapped her free arm around his waist for support and he put his around her shoulders. They left the hospital happily, glad to be on the road to recovery.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Settling into his apartment again was a lot easier than Mulder had been expecting. Scully came to see him every day, often not leaving until the next morning. She always brought him food and medicines. Even Maggie came to visit several times. Mulder grew stronger by the day, and so did his relationship with Scully.

One evening, Mulder and Scully were sat on the couch at his apartment. She had just finished changing his bandages and they were now catching up on the news. A shooting had taken place in downtown Richmond earlier that week and it was still in the news. Scully then turned to Mulder and asked him the same question she had asked him, back in the hospital, weeks earlier.

"You saw who shot you, _didn't_ you?" He was silent, and Scully didn't push him, but waited for a response.

"Yes, I saw him. Cabrera's _not_ in Cuba…" He paused, his eyes focused on the tv. Then he looked at Scully before continuing. "And as soon as I'm strong enough, I'm gonna hunt him down." His voice was filled with conviction. "He's not gonna get away now. Before it was just drug-running, trafficking…now it's personal!" He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth as a twinge shot through his bandaged head.

Scully reached up and stroked his hair until the pang subsided and he calmed down. She looked at the clock.

"It's getting late, Mulder. I've gotta be at work for the whole day tomorrow. So why don't you get some sleep? I'll come by and see you in the evening, okay? I think you're well enough to be on your own for a bit more now. I'm so glad you're getting better."

Mulder nodded, as she leaned over to kiss him.

"Goodnight, Mulder."

He reached out and held her arm, stopping her from turning, before pressing his lips to hers again.

"Goodnight, Scully." And then, for the first time, he said it properly: "I love you."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

One bright morning, a few days later, when she arrived at work, Scully was surprised to find the basement office door unlocked.

"Hey Mulder! You're supposed to be resting! Why are you here?" Scully walked over to his desk. "You shouldn't be back here yet! It's too soon."

"I know Scully, but I was so bored watching daytime TV and napping! So I figured why not come in and help you with the reports you've been moaning about." He leant back in his chair, smiling at her.

"Well…" she paused, taking in his still bandaged head, and his return to wearing a suit. "You shouldn't be back at work yet. But I must say it's nice to have your company back down here…just don't work too hard!"

He beamed up at her. "Thanks Scully. Could you do me a favour?"

"I'm always doing you favours!" Scully said. Mulder pouted.

"Please? I am still an invalid." He pointed to his head. "Just go and lock the door."

"Why?" Scully asked.

"I have some evidence to show you. Don't want to be interrupted."

Scully turned the lock on the door and came back to the desk. "Well, what is it?"

"You may want to sit down, Scully."

She hopped up onto the edge of his desk, crossing her legs, as Mulder stood up from his chair.

He handed her a pile of photographs.

"I've been having Cabrera surveilled. He's come back here; Boston, Providence, New York, and DC."

Scully flicked through the pictures as Mulder spoke.

"Ok, Mulder…We'll get him soon. But I don't understand, why the secrecy? Everyone knows we're after him; he shot you. Why lock the door?"

"Well," Mulder said, stepping closer to her. "I must admit I had an ulterior motive for locking the door." He took her hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb. Scully put down the photos.

"Mulder," she said, trying to sound convincing as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "You know the Bureau's regulations on the fraternising of on-duty agents…especially in their _offices_!"

"We always break all the rules anyway, Scully. Why stop at this one?" Mulder whispered as he kissed her neck. "Besides, I only want to kiss you…"

"Well, if this is the true reason you came into work today, then I'm glad you did…but I'm also very annoyed… you could have waited until I had finished up tonight! You still need to rest…"

"Shut up, Scully…"

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

When the office had finally been unlocked, and they had both made a start on their work, there was a knock on the door. "Come in." Scully called.

A young agent came in carrying an evidence envelope.

"Agent Mulder, this came for you, care of the Boston field office. The details are in with it."

"Thanks." Mulder tore open the envelope and pulled out the plastic bag containing a red Washington Nationals baseball cap. "This is his, Scully! He was wearing it when he shot me!"

He unfolded the note containing the details of the evidence."It says they found it in an abandoned '97 Buick LeSabre. It's got prints all over it, and a partial thumb print on the peak." And with not another word, Mulder turned to his computer and put all his attention to finding Cabrera.

"My head's pounding." Mulder rubbed his eyes. He had been working on the Cabrera case for several hours now, with Scully assisting him. "Is it okay if I go home and take a nap? Can you manage here?"

"Sure. You go home and rest, I'll finish up all this. Do you want me to drive you?"

"No I can manage. See you later." He picked up a copy of Cabrera's file, kissed Scully on the cheek and left the office.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mulder was lying on his couch; his head on a cushion, his shoes and tie on the floor. A glass of water and a packet of painkillers lay on the coffee table nearby. His socks were beginning to become threadbare and his shirt was creased from sleeping. When he found that he couldn't sleep anymore he picked up the case-file. There was a knock on the door, followed by Scully's voice. "Mulder?"

"Door's open!" he called, he did not look up from the pages as Scully entered the room. She stalked over and tore the file from his hands.

"Mulder!" She said in a mock-stern voice, "You're supposed to be taking a nap! How many times have you read over this?" She raised her eyebrow. Mulder sat up and laughed. "Several times. I know him inside out now." He stood up, taking the file back, and throwing it to the floor before kissing her.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next morning dawned rainy and grey. Mulder groaned as the alarm clock sounded. He hit the button to silence its shrill tone, and swung his legs out of bed, sitting up. His head was once again pounding, and he felt dizzy and unwell. He stood up, staggered slightly, and noticed a note on the slept-on pillow on the other side of the bed.

"_Mulder,_

_I got called into work early this morning. I didn't want to wake you. You tossed and turned a lot in the night. You've got a slight fever. Stay home today. I'll call you around lunchtime and if anything else comes up. Get some more rest and don't forget your medicine. See you later._

_Lots of love, Dana x"_

Mulder smiled at the note and grabbed the container of pills from his nightstand. Going into the kitchen to fetch himself a glass of water, Mulder noticed the light on his answering machine was flashing.

He gulped down the pills and water.

"Urgh, horse pills!" He said to himself, pressing the button on the machine; beep.

"Mulder! How you doing?" Langly's voice sounded very cheerful. "We're gonna come visit you! When you free? Byers found a new conspiracy about Plum Island online; can't wait to show you! Oh, and also I just got the latest deluxe edition of D&D! Kicked Frohike's ass! Anyhoo… will can have a game when we come over! Give us a call when you can! Later, man."

Mulder chuckled to himself and picked up the phone, dialling the gunmen's number. However, as he put the phone to his ear, he heard a clicking on the line. He hung up quickly and ran to the window. Who was tapping his phone? There was no suspicious activity outside. Mulder frowned and turned back to the phone. He picked it up again and checked it all over for bugs. Finding nothing, he disconnected it at the wall and went to find his cell phone.

Still in his pyjamas, Mulder did some more work on the Cabrera case at his computer. The tv was on in the background and 'The View' had just started. The women were discussing gun crime. Mulder sighed and flicked the tv off. His stomach rumbled with hunger.

"Okay, okay." He said patting his stomach. Just as he stood up to go to the kitchen, his cell phone rang.

"Mulder."

"Hey." He was pleased to hear Scully's voice. "Are you okay, Mulder? I couldn't get through to your home phone."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just…disconnected it so I could get some sleep." He lied, not wanting to worry her.

"Oh, right. How you feeling? Has the fever gone down?" The medic in her was beginning to show again.

"Yes, Doc. I'm feeling better. Just headachy again, but what can I expect?" He chuckled slightly.

"I'm glad to hear that. Well, make sure you rest." Scully continued.

"What are you up to?"

"More autopsy data." She sighed. "I'll be home after five. I'll bring some food. What do you fancy?"

"You." Mulder answered, smirking to himself.

"I'm not on the menu." Scully deadpanned. "I can hear you smirking! Let me rephrase; what do you want for dinner tonight?"

"You choose. Surprise me."

"Okay. Well, I'll leave you to rest. Take care. See you later. Love you."

"Love you too, Scully."

Mulder hung up the phone and went into the bathroom. After washing, shaving and putting on a freshly laundered shirt and pants, he went into the kitchen. He made a bologna sandwich and a cup of coffee and went back to his desk. As he opened the blinds a crack further to let in a bit more daylight, out of the corner of his eye he spotted a man wearing a baseball cap walking along the sidewalk. Mulder squinted down at the man, trying to see which team he supported.

"C'mon Yankees." Mulder muttered, but as the man got closer Mulder saw that the blue cap bore the red B of the Boston Red Sox.

"Red Sox…" Mulder muttered. "They're doing worse than the Yankees _and_ the Nationals."

He sat back down at his desk, taking a bite from his sandwich.

He pulled open the drawer and flicked through the surveillance shots of Cabrera. Mulder picked up his coffee, but stopped before he had put the mug to his lips. In this photo, Cabrera was standing beside his car; the '97 Buick. And in his hand-- Mulder put on his glasses for a closer look-- was a baseball cap bearing a large B! Mulder stood up like a shot, upsetting his chair as he did so. He ran to the bedroom and pulled on his jacket. He picked up his gun and badge from the dresser top, slipped on his shoes, and bolted from the front door.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Walking along the sidewalk in quick strides, Mulder scanned the area for a glimpse of the Boston fan.

As he passed into the busier area of town, Mulder was confronted by more people.

"Great." He muttered, pushing through the crowd. Suddenly, he spotted the blue baseball cap.

Ignoring the pain in his head, he quickened his pace even more. The man went into a store and Mulder hung around, waiting for him to emerge. A few minutes later, the man emerged, lighting a cigarette as he did so. Mulder, who had been buying a newspaper from a machine as a cover, got a good look at his face. It was definitely Cabrera. Throwing his Washington Post into a garbage can, Mulder set off after him. Keeping a safe distance, he followed Cabrera further along the street. Suddenly, he disappeared down a graffiti-strewn alley. Giving up his cover and pulling his gun, Mulder tore down the alley after him.

"Freeze!" He yelled. "Federal Agent! Stop or I'll shoot!"

Cabrera did not stop. Mulder fired once into the air. Still the man did not stop. He ran to the other end of the alley and disappeared around the corner and onto the next street.

"Stop!" Mulder yelled again. His breath hitched in his chest and his head swam as he rounded the corner in pursuit. "Stop!" People moved out of the way when they heard him yell. "Federal agent!" He yelled again. "Stop!"

Mulder spotted Cabrera slip into yet another alley. He ran faster and caught sight him attempting to climb a wire fence.

"Cabrera! Freeze or I'll shoot!" Mulder warned, coming to a stop. The man continued to climb.

Mulder fired at the man and hit him in the leg. Cabrera fell to the ground and lay writhing in pain, clutching his leg. Mulder took out his handcuffs and approached him, his breathing fast and shallow.

He caught his breath and spoke. "Nuncio Cabrera, you are under arrest for drug-related offences, resisting arrest, and the attempted murder of a federal -- arghhhh!"

Mulder staggered backwards, clutching his abdomen. He slumped against a Dumpster as hot blood poured out over his hands, staining his shirt red. On the ground, his leg bleeding profusely, Cabrera had drawn his gun, and was now grinning sadistically.

"If I go, then so do you, Mulder!" He breathed, his Hispanic accent heavy with pain.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Scully was busy writing yet another autopsy report, when the phone on Mulder's desk rang. Crossing the room to pick it up, she didn't have time to speak before Assistant Director Skinner's urgent voice spoke.

"Scully, come to my office immediately! Mulder has found Cabrera, and he's been shot."

A few minutes later, Scully and Skinner were in a car, driving hurriedly towards Alexandria.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

When Scully and Skinner turned the corner into the alley, Scully gasped at the sight before her. There was blood everywhere; the alley was a sea of red. Cabrera lay on the ground, blood pooling around his leg, and Mulder sat slumped, head down, hands desperately trying to stem the flow of blood from his stomach.

"You get Mulder. I'll deal with Cabrera." Skinner said, sprinting over to the wounded criminal.

Mulder spotted Scully and attempted to stand up. He tried to limp towards her, his face racked with pain. She ran to him as fast as she could.

"Mulder! Don't move! Oh my God!"

His white button-down shirt was wet with blood as Scully felt for the wound. She tried to unbutton the shirt, her hands slipping on the wet material. "Hold on Mulder…" She grabbed handfuls of the material and tore the shirt open as more blood leaked out.

"Scully…" Mulder croaked. "I--I got him!"

"I know you did Mulder. Well done!" He voice was beginning to crack. "Now let me sort you out. The paramedics will be here any second." She pressed one of her hands to the wound, trying to stem the blood, and with her other she held tightly to Mulder's trembling hand.

"Scully," Mulder said again. "I don't think I'm gonna make it this time…" His eyes were closing and his skin was becoming cold under Scully's hand. "I was too lucky last time…my luck's balancing out now." His voice shook and broke, as tears leaked from his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. "I was only ever lucky with one thing - in my whole life, Scully…knowing you."

Scully could hear the sound of ambulance sirens nearby. She tried desperately to keep her voice calm, as tears began to obscure her vision. "Shh…You hear that Mulder? They're nearly here." She kissed him gently, and began to sob.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Dana!" Maggie hurried down the hospital corridor towards her daughter. "What's happened? I got here as fast as I could." She was shocked to see dry blood staining her daughter's clothes. "Oh my God! What's happened?"

"Mulder." Scully choked as Maggie hugged her. "He's been shot! And I only just got him out of this place!" They sat down together, Scully's resolve crumbling once she was in her mother's arms.

Mulder lay in bed, tubes and wires all over his body. A nasogastric tube fed into his nostril, and was taped onto his nose. IV lines fed into his arms, delivering him with precious, desperately needed blood transfusions. He was unconscious, and had been since the paramedics had got him into the ambulance.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sitting in the corridor, Scully fingered the small golden cross around her neck. She looked up as two nurses approached her. They entered Mulder's room to check his monitors and prep him for theatre.

Scully knew that a bullet wound to the stomach, the type which Mulder had sustained, was incredibly painful because of the spilling of powerful acids onto surrounding organs; burning them. Her medical knowledge usually kept her calm, but now it was making her feel nauseous with worry. If Mulder actually made it through this alive, the damage could be so bad that it could result in him having to eat by means tube inserted into the body for several weeks, or even forever. He could also be paralysed if the bullet had ruptured any of the essential nerves found in the abdomen. Scully hung her head and rubbed her eyes, trying to forget her medical knowledge: at times like these it would be easier to be ignorant of the workings of the human body.

The extent of the damage Mulder had suffered would not be known until later that evening after a long session of exploratory surgery. They had stabilised his condition and could now begin the exhaustively difficult job of tracing the bullet's path through his abdomen.

Maggie returned to her daughter's side with two cans of Pepsi.  
"Thought you could do with a sugary drink." She said, handing one to Scully. "Replenish your energy."

Scully smiled her thanks, weakly. "They're just prepping him for the OR now." Scully said over the sound of opening the can. "He'll be in surgery for hours." She took a large gulp of the fizzy brown liquid and closed her eyes. "Something doesn't want us to be together, Mom. It doesn't want us to be happy…it won't let me be happy for more than five minutes!"

"Oh, Dana…" Maggie rubbed her back soothingly. "Are you sure you don't want to go home? I can drive you."

"No mom…I need to stay here. I have to know that I am doing everything I can…but there's nothing I can do, really!" Scully's voice began to break again. "At- at least this time we didn't row first…"

Maggie took her daughter's free hand. "At least this time the last things we said to each other were out of love, not anger…" Maggie watched her strong daughter weaken before her eyes, and enveloped her in another hug, as Mulder was wheeled out of the room and away to the operating room.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About an hour later, when Scully had calmed down once again, Skinner approached them.

"Hi." He said gently, sitting down next to Scully. "I thought you'd want to know…Cabrera's dead.

Mulder got him good; he lost too much blood."

Scully nodded, not looking up at him. "I don't know how to feel about it, sir."

"You don't need to do anything about it, Scully. I'll sort out the reports. You just concentrate on what's important now." He squeezed her shoulder before standing up. "I'll be back in a while. Mulder should be out of surgery soon." They watched Skinner's comforting form fade down the corridor.

"You have a lovely boss, Dana." Maggie commented. "I never expected such a nice man to be an assistant director of the FBI." This made Scully laugh slightly.

"Thanks Mom…Can I ask you something?"

"Of course Dana. Anything."

"When I was away, and when I was…ill, how did you deal with worrying?"

"I just prayed Dana. That's all. I had faith that God would keep you safe and bring you home."

"I had faith…" Scully sighed. "The first time around. It brought Mulder back…but now he's been snatched away from me again, I don't know what to do."

"You have not lost your faith, Dana. Don't ever give up on Mulder."

"It's just unfair!" Scully suddenly burst out. "We finally told each other the truth and got stronger together. I felt like there was nothing we couldn't do together; we were invincible. We could finally just be in love with each other. But now it's all gone again! And I pray, Mom! I pray everyday that we will be okay! How can this happen?"

"It's not your fault. You both have a dangerous job…" Maggie didn't really know what else to say.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mulder was still in his bed, when Scully was allowed to go in to see him. She took his hand straight away, watching him as she stroked his wrist.

"Mulder…" she breathed. "Please wake up. I'm not leaving until you wake up."

She looked at the monitors, their lights flashing, and listened to their steady beeping. Mulder was stable. Miraculously, the bullet had missed his organs. But, it had perforated some blood vessels, and damaged some nerves along his spinal column as it had exited. The extent of the nerve damage wouldn't be known until he regained consciousness and they could perform an EMG. Scully moved her hand in his so that their palms were touching. She then leant up and placed a kiss to his temple.

"Cabrera's dead, Mulder. You shouldn't have gone after him, you silly man! I'm never gonna let you do anything stupid again!" She sighed, and then laughed slightly. "Who am I kidding? If you can hear me, you know that I never _could_ stop you being silly." She lowered her voice. "It's one of the reasons I love you. Come on, wake up…" She closed her eyes as her tears came again, breaking through her attempted defences, and falling onto Mulder's arm. "I'm so sorry, Mulder."

"Scully…" Mulder's voice was quiet and his eyes were still closed. He gripped her hand. "What are you sorry for? Did you forget the Scrabble?"

Scully sniffed back her tears and stared at him, a smile spreading over her face. "You're awake!"

He opened his eyes slowly, trying to focus on her face. "Scully…"

Mulder reached out to cup her cheek, to wipe away her tears, but stopped. "What's on my legs, Scully?"  
"What, Mulder?"

"Is there something on my legs? I can't move them…"

"Are you sure?" Through the sheet covering him, Scully pinched Mulder's leg. "Can you feel this?"

"No. I can't feel… Scully, am I…am I paralysed?" He swallowed hard.

"I-I don't know Mulder…" She sniffed again and said quickly, "I'll be back in a moment."

Mulder watched her leave, tears streaming down his cheeks. He tried again to move his legs; crying in frustration and grief.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Maggie watched her daughter emerge from Mulder's room.

"Dana?" She asked, but Scully was already running off down the corridor.

Minutes later she returned with a doctor, and they entered Mulder's room.

Maggie watched them through the window. She was shocked to see Mulder awake and in a state of distress.

"We will conduct an EMG tomorrow, Mr Mulder. That will allow us to determine the extent of nerve damage. I expect however that we will find the damage to be either axonotmesis or neurotmesis."

Mulder looked at Scully to gauge her reaction to these complicated terms. Her face dropped at the latter. The doctor continued speaking.

"With axonotmesis nerve regeneration occurs on its own, recovery is good, but it will require a lot of time and extensive rehab."

"And the other one?" Mulder asked tentatively, wiping at his eyes, regaining his composure.

"If it is indeed a case of Neurotmesis, recovery will require operative repair and the prognosis is variable… it may not be possible for recovery even with surgery."

When the doctor was leaving, Mulder noticed Maggie stood outside the door.

"Your mom can come in." He told Scully, who motioned for her mother to enter. Maggie pushed into the room, smiling slightly at Mulder.

"Hello, Fox." She came over and reached for his hand, not sure what else to say.

"Hi, Mrs Scully. I'd get up and hug you but…" Mulder said, attempting a joke.

"Oh, Mulder…" Scully whispered.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next day dawned, and Mulder awoke to find Scully at his bedside.

"Morning." He said quietly, as she kissed his cheek.

"Morning. How did you sleep? Did the sleeping pills work?"

"Yep." He shifted in bed as best as he could, attempting to sit up straight. Scully grabbed his arms and helped him. "Did you get any sleep?" He asked her, concern evident in his voice.

"A little. I went home and then came back. I needed to be near you. Make sure you're okay."

She sat back down and looked at her watch. "They're gonna come do the EMG soon."

"What does it entail, Doc?" Mulder asked her.

"Well, it's not gonna be much fun, Mulder."

"I figured that. Tell me."

"A needle electrode is gonna be put through your skin into the muscle tissue. The neurologist is then gonna observe the electrical activity and determine the extent of the damage."

"Great…" Mulder mumbled. "Will it hurt?"

"Some patients can find the procedure painful, but others only a say there is a bit of discomfort when the needle is inserted. Just like getting a shot! Your muscles may be sore for a day or two after though."

"If I'm brave do I get a lollipop?" Mulder asked in a childish voice, smiling at Scully. "C'mon Scully, smile please!" She flashed him a weak smile as there was a knock on the door and the neurologist, Dr Firth entered the room, wheeling in the EMG equipment.

"Good morning, Mr Mulder. How are you feeling?"

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

With the test finished, the neurologist removed the electrodes from Mulder's legs. He winced slightly as the cold metal needle was pulled from his flesh.

"Well," Dr Firth announced, "It's the best news we could hope for in these circumstances Mr Mulder. The damage has occurred to the nerve axons, but the myelin sheathes are all still intact. You are suffering from axonotmesis, but with medication, time and rehab you will be as good as new in anywhere between 9 months and a couple of years. It will take time and perseverance, but I assure you that you will walk again."

"Thank you, Doctor. I'm not afraid of hard work." Mulder said, shaking the man's hand. The Doctor left, giving them some privacy and now Scully smiled, relief flooding her features. She hugged Mulder and then pulled out her cell phone. "I've gotta call Skinner and Mom!"

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Several months later, Mulder had partially moved into Scully's apartment so she could take care of him. He had just spent the Saturday watching football and playing D&D with the Gunmen. Beer bottles now littered the coffee table.

"You're on medication, you know!" Scully had protested.

"Oh, go on Scully! Let him relax!" Frohike had said and eventually she allowed Mulder to have a couple of beers.

Mulder was now napping while Scully made a start on some dinner. Suddenly, Mulder yelled from where he lay on the couch. "Scully! Scully!"

"What's wrong?" She ran in from the kitchen, wooden spoon in hand, and worried.

"I-I can feel my toes! They're tingling! The feeling's coming back!"

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The first steps were hard. Mulder winced as he held the bars and moved his legs a few inches. Inch by inch, one step at a time; that was the way it had to be. The physiotherapist smiled.

"Well done, Mr Mulder. At this rate you will be running the marathon next year!"

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Keep those eyes closed, Mulder!" Scully said as she pushed his wheelchair.

"Why? Where are you taking me?" He moaned, exaggeratedly.

"It's a surprise!" Scully said. "Nearly there."

She stopped walking and turned Mulder to face whatever it was she wanted him to see.

"Okay, you can look now!"

He opened his eyes to find that they were at his favourite spot by the reflecting pool; the tree with pink blossom and the stone bench. Scully sat down on the bench so she was at the same level as Mulder.

"I haven't been here for so long…" Mulder said, taking a deep breath and wiggling his toes in his sandals. "Thank you Scully."

"You're welcome." She took his hands in hers. "Soon we are gonna walk along here, hand in hand." She smiled at him. "We're strong together, Mulder. There's nothing we can't do; we're invincible. I really believe that."

"So do I, Scully…"

And slowly but surely Mulder eased himself up from the chair, Scully standing up with him. Mulder took two steady steps forward and wrapped his arms around her tightly, Scully tucking herself into the place under his chin as she always did. They stood in that silent embrace and watched the ripples spread out across the still surface of the pool as the pink blossom drifted lazily down onto the water.


End file.
